First week in Nepal, Part 3

I don’t mean to give the impression that we are less than ecstatic to be here. Bed bugs aside.

Kathmandu is a throbbing sort of place, beautifully different from anywhere I’ve been before. In general though, the country bears a strong resemblance to Guatemala. I suppose just as affluent cities all resemble each other, poverty and labor-intensive-agriculture-to-survive areas have a commonality.

But I have never seen anything like the dark green mountain slopes, so steep, mist clinging in places. The upper levels incredibly tend to have thin terraces growing corn, and I cannot imagine the amount of work these people do to farm so. The lower levels are usually rice paddies, the monsoon season filling them, the women in robes stooped over, mud up to their ankles and wrists, the men following behind oxen and buffalo pulling handmade ploughs.

We enjoyed our time outside the city, and were glad to return to it. The tourist block, Thamel, has a fantastic array of food options, and we have been feasting on Indian, Thai, Other, and sometimes the Nepali Dal Bhat. But time is up, so I’ll tell you that stuff later.